PETALING JAYA: Pakatan Harapan leaders are at odds over the cause of the violence that erupted during the Nothing to Hide 2.0 forum in Shah Alam on Sunday.
PKR deputy president Datuk Seri Azmin Ali pinned the blame on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s absence from the event, which he claimed had led to the gathering’s chaotic end.
In making the allegation, Azmin said the prime minister’s team would have had conducted a detailed security sweep of the venue if Najib was to appear at the forum.
“I am sure that if he (Najib) had appeared, nothing would have happened. His security team will be in full force, and there will be screening to ensure the prime minister's safety," Azmin said when met after a Pakatan Harapan protem leaders' press conference today.
On Sunday, Azmin had alleged Najib as the "mastermind" of the incident, which saw bottles, chairs and a flare thrown at Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) chairman Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad who was speaking on centre-stage at Dewan Raja Muda Musa.
However, at a press conference earlier, PPBM president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the security detail was lacking as “politicians would not know how to differentiate between good and bad individuals” in the hall.
“We politicians do not have the skills to ascertain between good and bad people.
“It is difficult for us to know because we are not from a security team.
“Of course, we gave the assurance that no untoward incidents would happen, but we would not know if there are actually protesters making their way in, especially if they wear the same (party uniform) like us.”
Muhyiddin also claimed that the chaos was likely premeditated.
“But of course, we will be more careful in the future.
The commotion broke out shortly after an audience member asked Dr Mahathir about the 1985 Memali incident in Kedah.
Dr Mahathir and his wife Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali were escorted safely out of the hall.
The police later deployed a Light Strike Force anti-riot team.
Three teenagers were later detained to facilitate investigations.